Police try to temper outrage over gang rape

Indian students and activists shout slogans and hold placards as they participate in a protest against the recent brutal gang-rape in New Delhi, Dec. 27. The 23 year old girl who was gang-raped by 6 men on a moving bus on the night of 16 December 2012 has been shifted to Singapore hospital for further treatment.

Anindito Mukherjee / EPA

Indian security forces face students and activists shouting slogans, during a protest against the recent brutal gang-rape in New Delhi on Dec. 27.

Altaf Qadri / AP

Indian protesters shout slogans while demonstrating against the recent gang rape of a young woman in a moving bus in New Delhi on Dec. 27.

By Reuters

Police thwarted an attempt by activists on Thursday to rekindle mass protests in New Delhi over the Dec. 16 gang rape and ferocious beating of a young woman, after the victim was airlifted to Singapore for specialist hospital care to save her life.

Activists who gathered on Thursday for a fresh march on India Gate were stopped by police in riot gear armed with tear gas and water cannons to hold them back.

"We will win back our freedom!" the protesters, mostly university students, shouted as they pushed against barricades on a road leading to the city's landmark monument. Unable to make further headway, the crowd dispersed as night fell.

New Delhi has the highest number of sex attacks among India's major cities, with a rape reported on average every 18 hours, according to the National Crimes Records Bureau.